Sam van Gool

Position: General Manager: Human Resources

Like most of the leaders at Flight Centre South Africa, Sam van Gool has risen through the ranks, from consultant to Peopleworks Leader.

Her passion for the staff at Flight Centre is evident through her commitment to the Flight Centre philosophy of "Our Company is our People". Sam qualified in microbiology and genetics and was in the middle of her studies to be a medical doctor when she took time out to travel through Europe.

During this time the travel bug bit and after a short stay back home for a family wedding she accepted a job with Flight Centre. Ostensibly the job was meant to tide her over until she could continue her travels but the Flight Centre bug then bit.

How to combine both a love for travel and for people? Work for South Africa's top travel retailer! Sam joined the Flight Centre group in 1999 as a consultant in the Fourways branch and before the year was out she was promoted to store manager.

In 2003 Sam took the opportunity to explore the corporate brand of Flight Centre (FCm Travel Solutions) before taking up a position as a national trainer in the Learning Centre. When the opportunity arose to take over the Learning Centre in 2006/7 Sam put her hand up and was appointed.

In 2007 after a successful stint taking care of the development needs of the company Sam was promoted to look after all Flight Centre's Human Resource needs. As the leader of Peopleworks Sam is very excited about the prospects for all staff members (current and future) at Flight Centre.

Sam is very motivated and passionate about people and recently became a mom so work/life balance is a very important aspect of working for the Flight Centre group. Her portfolio includes Recruitment, the Learning Centre, Careerwise, Paymatters and Healthwise.